Risks 85
by Still Waters
Summary: Apologies and explanations and maybe a little makeup sex


**All for Jesus, Lupin fan 1, and Shadowbeats22107: Thank you so much for taking the time to review chapter 8. I'm so glad you enjoyed it. Here is 8.5. Hope you enjoy it as well.**

Risks 8.5

A soft knock drew Maria to the door. She opened it, gazing for a moment at the contrite man waiting there before finally stepping back in invitation. She closed the door and turned to lean against it, arms crossed at her chest, expression serious. Nick stepped a few feet into the room, then turned to face her, his hands behind his back.

"Glad to have you back," he told her, watching her closely as he tried to gauge her mood.

"It's good to be back," she finally answered, continuing to hold his stare.

"And you handled everything wonderfully. Not that I expected otherwise," he continued. When she didn't answer, he ran a hand over his head and sighed heavily. "You're not going to make this easy on me, are you?"

He thought he noticed her lips twitch slightly before she answered him.

"Nope."

After another extended silence, he took a step towards her.

"I missed you," he told her, his voice deep with emotion.

Now it was her turn to sigh.

"So, what happened here, Nick?" she asked curiously.

"I was trying to apologize," he explained.

She waved dismissively. "I got that. I just don't understand why you need to apologize. Why you did what you needed to apologize for," she clarified.

He thought for a moment, trying to find just the right words to explain.

"Insecurity, I suppose. And fear."

Her expression still showed confusion.

He tried again. "I was afraid of losing you. Afraid that maybe if you were away from me for a long time, you'd realize how much better you could do. That you might find someone closer to your own age, someone that you have more in common with."

"Nick."

"I was also terrified of something happening to you. Of you getting hurt, or worse." He saw her start to speak and rushed to continue. "I know that you're perfectly capable of taking care of yourself, probably more so than I can, but just for a few minutes, I let the overprotective caveman take over."

"You dismissed my abilities in front of everyone," she reminded him. "You intimated that I wasn't able to do what needed to be done, that you didn't have faith in me."

He started to argue, then stopped. "Yes, I suppose it did come across that way. That wasn't my intention. In my defense, I did reverse myself and sent you. And I mentioned in the next meeting that you were taking care of the matter."

"I heard," she replied. "So, why did you change your mind? That's not like you?"

Grinning, he answered. "No, it's not, is it? I had a talk with someone else who is involved with a stubborn, independent woman who is very good at her job and was reminded that accepting that and supporting her is part of the relationship."

Knitting her brows for a moment, she finally nodded in understanding. "Barton."

Nick nodded. "The man has a way with words."

She continued to stare at him as he waited, allowing himself a measure of hope since she hadn't kicked him out yet.

"But know you know better and you won't act like that again?" she asked.

"I can't promise," he told her, "because it's a part of who I am to want to protect the people that I care about, but I will promise to try to do better."

Finally, she nodded. "I guess that will have to do."

She quickly closed the distance between them, placing her hands on either side of his face and pulling him down. Her lips claimed his passionately, her tongue pushing his lips, demanding entrance.

After a moment of shock at her sudden reaction, he acquiesced, groaning softly as she threaded her arms around his neck and pressed her body close against his. His hands found the sides of her robe and slipped inside it, wrapping around her waist. She rubbed close against him, enjoying the feel of his reaction to her. As the kiss intensified, his hands roamed downward, grasping her thighs as he started to lift her.

She suddenly pushed away slightly.

"No," she mumbled against his mouth. "No time."

Her hands went to his waist and went to work on his belt and pants fastener as she guided him backwards towards the sofa. Just as the back of his legs hit the cushion, her hands finished their work and she allowed his pants to drop to the floor.

"Dressed in a hurry today?" she commented, noting his lack of underwear as she grasped his erection lightly.

His only answer was a groan as he put a hand on her neck to pull her face back to his. She allowed it for a moment, then nipped lightly at his lip before pushing him backwards into a sitting position. As she dropped her robe, he reached out, running his hands up under her shirt to grasp her hips and pull her down to straddle him.

It was her turn to groan as his hands slid up her body, pushing her shirt up to expose her breasts to the cool air of the room. He leaned forward, grasping one erect, pink nipple between his teeth as his arms drew her closer again.

With her head thrown back, she ground against him, rubbing her clit against his cock for several minutes before lowering her hand to steady him as she slid onto him. Both gasped with pleasure at the contact.

"You feel so good," he murmured as he hurriedly pulled her shirt over her head and tossed it to the floor.

She guided his lips back to her breast as she arched her back to give him easier access. He took her into his mouth, sucking deeply as his hands moved to her butt, gripping her cheeks tightly to draw her even closer to him.

Gripping his shoulders, she rocked against him. Between the feel of his mouth teasing her nipples, his fingers on her skin, and the friction of his erection stroking her inside, she found herself quickly approaching her climax. Wrapping her legs around him, she let it come, groaning out his name as the intensity of sensation took over. She heard his answering moan as he thrust once more inside her and his arms wrapped around her once more, holding her close.

As awareness slowly returned, she buried her face in his neck, licking teasingly at the sweat that rolled down.

A laugh rumbled in his chest.

"So, I guess you accept my apology?"

She sat up and looked him in the eye, a small grin on her face.

"I suppose. That one, anyway."

He raised an eyebrow. "That one?"

"You have a lot to apologize for, Nick."

"Don't forget all the other stuff," he reminded her.

She nodded in acknowledgement. "Okay. Dinner and the wine will count as an apology for being insecure. The bubble bath will cover being overprotective."

"That was an expensive bottle of wine," he protested.

"That you liberated from Stark?" she asked with a knowing look.

"Yeah," he mumbled, "but I had to do some research to find the best one for the soup."

Smiling, she continued. "The book and the chocolate." As she thought, she moved against him, tightening herself around his member. "Those will cover the apology for not telling me what was going on."

"So what else do I owe you for?" he asked, feeling himself responding to her body.

"The public lack of faith."

"You should get a big one for that," he agreed.

"But the biggest one," she said, pulling his shirt off and running her hands over his bare chest, "is for sticking me with Hiroshi and Nichols for 2 freaking weeks."

"Surely that wasn't that bad," he protested.

"Nichols?"

Finally, he nodded. "You're right. I owe you a major apology for that. Though I'd owe you even more if you had conveniently lost him on the trip."

She laughed, leaning forward to kiss him as she continued working his cock.

He put his hands on her hips, holding her firmly in place as he carefully toed off his shoes and finished kicking off his pants. He quickly turned, laying her flat on the couch as he stretched over her.

"Guess I'd better get busy."

"Guess you'd better," she agreed, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him close.

**A little short (hey, it had been two weeks, they were in a hurry), but hopefully sweet. I hope you enjoyed it and that you found the reasons for Nick's behaviors to be believable. Please let my know what you thought. I adore reviews.**


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